"Didn't let negative comments deter me" - Kochi Blue Spikers captain Karthik

Kochi Blue Spikers skipper Karthik has opened up about his journey to becoming one of India's best volleyball players. The 31-year-old will be seen in action during the upcoming RuPay Prime Volleyball League (PVL) to be held from February 5-27 at the indoor Gachibowli Stadium in Hyderabad.

Karthik also serves as the captain of the Indian national team. He had to overcome several hardships to achieve success in the sport.

Karthik will lead the Kochi Blue Spikers against Hyderabad Black Hawks in the opening match of the PVL on Saturday.

Ahead of the PVL opener, he spoke about how he got introduced to volleyball.

"My entry into volleyball happened at an unexpected time," he recalled. "I started playing volleyball when I was in junior college, while most other players start playing the sport during their school days.

"One of my father's friends, who was a volleyball referee, asked my father to induct me into sports because I have a good height," he added. "My father's friend suggested that I should join the Sports Authority of India in Bangalore. Since I had a bit of knowledge about volleyball from my school days, I chose to play volleyball at SAI."

Karthik also went on to admit that he was subjected to a lot of criticism during his early days in the sport. But he remained unfazed and overcame all the negativity to become a top class volleyball player.

"After I started practicing at SAI, I understood that I could make a career in volleyball and that's when I decided that I have to do something in volleyball," he narrated. "When I started playing volleyball, I wasn't good at it. Some of the players at SAI used to talk behind my back that I wasn't good enough. Then I made up my mind that I should achieve something. I didn't let their comments deter me and I took those comments in a positive way."

Some of Karthik's major achievements include winning a gold medal with the Karnataka team at the Federation Cup in 2015. He was also part of the gold medal-winning team at the Senior Nationals in 2019.

My family is entirely dependent on my volleyball career: Karthik

Kathik also went on to reveal that he is the only bread winner in his family. Ever since the death of his father, the entire responsibility of his family has been on Karthik's shoulders.

"My father, who worked in a small construction business, passed away last year," he said. "The business is closed now. I got into volleyball because of my father. He showed the path to me. Now, I am the main income earner for the family. My family depends on me."